Chargers poised for playoffs

With the PACWEST Provincial Championships just around the corner, the Camosun College Chargers and their conference adversaries have one thing on their minds – the playoffs.

While both Chargers basketball teams have confirmed their participation in the Provincial Championships, it is still a waiting game to see exactly where the teams will be seeded. And according to the Chargers coaching staff, who felt disappointed with their team’s performance against the top ranked VIU Mariners last weekend, there is still a lot of work to be done.

“We played a terrible game against VIU last weekend,” commented Chargers Women’s Basketball Head Coach Brett Westcott whose team suffered a 78-47 defeat against VIU. “We’ll need to put out a better effort in all phases of the game against our upcoming opponents over the next two weeks to keep competitive!”

The Chargers men also fell to the Mariners in double digits (76-55) much to the dismay of Head Coach Craig Price. “We did not bring the kind of intensity or focus to beat a Nationally ranked team,” said Coach Price. “We need to pay more attention to the details and our preparation and we need to be considerably tougher in both a physical sense and a mental one. We still are not playing with consistent intensity within games or weekends.”

Standing in fifth place with a record of 8-11, the Chargers women’s volleyball team has confirmed their spot and despite a number of injuries to the lineup, things are looking good for the squad which is comprised primarily of first and second-year players.

“We’ve secured a playoff spot and will definitely be in the 4 versus 5 match,” reported Chargers Women’s Volleyball Head Coach Chris Dahl. “Injuries in competition and training have affected our roster but it has presented a great opportunity for our program to continue its growth by persevering through adversity.”

Coach Dahl’s philosophy of changing things up was certainly evident this past weekend when he moved second-year Charger Hilary Graham from her customary rightside position to the leftside and then back to the right again all in one weekend.

What resulted was a personal best for the native of Courtenay who produced a phenomenal total of 54 points in two matches and her first-ever PACWEST Athlete of the Week title.

“There’s a lot that goes on in a season and this is another experience in the growth of a team. At the end of the day, we play volleyball. We just want to make sure we play it better today than we did yesterday.”

Qualifying for the PACWEST Championships is a more complicated affair for the Chargers men’s volleyball team who currently stand fifth and is tied in points with the No. 6 University of the Fraser Valley Cascades and No. 7 College of the Rockies Avalanche.

While there is chance that Camosun could be knocked out, Chargers Men’s Volleyball Head Coach Charles Parkinson has led squads in similar positions out of the mire to not only qualify for Championship events, but to win them.

In 2008-09 Coach Parkinson’s Chargers entered as the #4 team then won the Provincial Championship before moving on to Nationals where the team won Bronze. The following year, Coach Parkinson led the fifth ranked Chargers to another Provincial title repeating their 2008-09 victory over Fraser Valley in the BCCAA Championship match.

This weekend, the Chargers men’s volleyball squad will face off against Fraser Valley in double header action on Saturday and Sunday. While the teams will be battling over points versus the crown, they will undoubtedly put on a great show of hard-hitting volleyball action.

The Chargers basketball and volleyball teams host their final home games of the season this weekend with three consecutive days of PACWEST sports action at the Pacific Institute for Sport Excellence (the games will also be streamed LIVE on SportsCanada.TV)!! Camosun’s Centre for Sport and Exercise Education students will be on site running contests, giving away prizes and raising funds for Cops for Cancer Tour de Rock!